COVID-19 Now On Every Continent After At Least 36 People In Antarctica Test Positive Antarctica was the only continent untouched by the coronavirus pandemic. But now, a Chilean research base has suffered an outbreak, with at least 36 people testing positive for COVID-19 this week — marking a grim milestone in the fight against the virus. Chile's armed forces told Reuters that 26 army personnel and 10 civilian maintenance workers have been infected at its Base General Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme. The remote research station, permanently staffed and operated by Chile's army, is surrounded by ocean and icebergs near the tip of a northern Antarctic peninsula.